The Butterfly Effect
by Marble Paradox
Summary: -Canon-division from just before the Band of Seven arc- When it seems the only thing going wrong is the fact their enemy has disappeared as if he never existed, everyone was wishing for something to go wrong. And then it does. Kidnapped, brainwashed, and now the queen amongst demons, Kagome doesn't recall the past or the half-demon stranger who claims he knows her.


**The Fall and the Rise: Part I**

_Today I write with saddest news I've ever had to record as a scribe: the queen is dead. But there is an upside; we've found a human shrine maiden who matches the late queen point for point. Her name is Kagome, and she shall become our new queen even if she doesn't want to._

_Signed, Ioki Seiichi_

In the Court of Delicacy, wails sounded in the air like bombs being dropped. Sadness, that was what filled the small island kingdom made solely of butterfly demons. Their most beloved woman, the woman who was known as the most beautiful, the most elegant, the most powerful, and the most well-manned, was dead. Cause of death, unknown, though likely murder. Those not too overwhelmed with tears chanted at the gates to the castle for the head of the murderer. Vengeance and sadness ran the kingdom now like and king and a queen.

The king was inept. He always had been. He was a terrible king. He had not a child to his name; a battle won, a battle commenced, a debt paid, a peace treaty signed, nor a civil right returned to the underdogs to leave in his wake. The Court of Delicacy was well aware that the true ruler on the island had been the queen. Once laws passed, it had not been the king's name signed but the queens'. When the royal couple entered the room, the servants had not bowed to the king, but to the queen. She had been the true power, the true driving force, and now that she was gone, they were aimless wanders wailing to the gods mumbled words of anguish and harsh yowls of agony.

In a room beneath the throne room, there was a secret passage. Only the most trusted advisors knew of it, and only one servant bound by magic knew of it. Not even the king knew of the room, though the queen had. This room, this secret meeting room, was where the queen had made the most important decisions in her time of control. Now, with her gone, her advisors met with one question in mind: what came next?

Some advocated for the king's cousin Michiyo. Michiyo showed great potential to become a queen who can stand on her own following the reign of the former queen. There were two problems with this though; the first being that Michiyo was already married and by law, to be queen, her husband must be king, and the second being how closely Michiyo was related to the current king by blood. Marriage between them would be illegal; the blood ties to strong for healthy children.

Some offered two simple options to resolve this problem. The more ridiculous idea that the late queen's lead advisor immediately shot down was to kill the king. Killing the king was an offence punishable by death for all the men who helped it happen. The needed to be there for the new queen, and killing the king would not allow that to happen. Anyhow, one must also remember that even if they got away with it, how much would the blood on their hands torment them?

The second option was more plausible, but even after much deliberating, the advisors could not find a way to make it happen. The idea had been to have the king legally dethroned for poor management. There was nothing in his reign that suggested he did poorly at ruling though. The queen had made sure of that. Even if on every document was the queen's name, and even if all those under the jurisdiction of the Court of Delicacy knew the king was an impish man who couldn't hold even a single cup of sake let alone win a war, there was not enough "acceptable" evidence for the ruling to pass. She had been a good queen if this was so, but her greatness was right now hurting her advisors.

"Who else than?" called one of the advisors. The council looked to him with eyes that glimmered with superiority. Michiyo was the only one that was suitable for the job in their opinion. Not a single woman out there could match up to the grace and respectability of the breathless queen. Michiyo was the one that screamed to them from their very core, but every way they looked to put her on the throne wasn't possible. She was not a plausible choice, not without breaking any major laws. Michiyo, rational thinking screamed, but Michiyo not screamed the law books.

Yet then a thought sprung to the head advisors mind. It was a thought that could get him locked away under terms of insanity, but in this situation, insanity might just be what they needed to replace the queen. Once the idea came to him, it was like putting puzzle pieces together. He got the first one and now the rest flowed like wine, quickly and easily.

"A human," he breathed. Silence instantly greeted his words, silence save for the few shocked gasps or the curious whispers asking what he had said. They were stunned to silence by his suggestion, by the craziness of it, but as the moments passed, one by one smiles of understanding spread across the advisors' faces and it was then they knew, in that secret little room that not even the king knew about, that the next queen would be the unthinkable.

The next queen would be human.

* * *

In his room, the king sat alone in silence as maids scurried about. Though they would look up at him from time to time, even some daring to approach and ask if he needed things, it felt more like he was in solitary confinement.

There were other looks he got that made him feel alone; accusatory looks, looks that said he killed his own wife. Those looks angered him so, but he didn't address those who shot those looks his way because he knew that people twisted words to mean something they didn't or have motive behind them that didn't exist so easily. Those looks he ignored because that was thing that he had to do, not only as king since certainly screaming at random servants who hadn't said a word might be grounds for suspicion of insanity, but as a man since admitting defeat to them was weakness.

He had loved his wife; his cherished Chiyoko. He had given the keys to their kingdom to her because he knew that had been what she wanted; that that had been her goal in life. To be a queen who left an impression on the children of a thousand generations to come. He was happy having her doing the work, because the work made her happy. He didn't care that it made him look weak and inept, especially since him and Chiyoko had never had any children. He knew servants rumored that he was incapable, eternally flaccid if one was so blunt. He hated the rumors, but he knew that those were things that spread in any court, not just the Court of Delicacy.

He could have people executed for their loyalty to his wife; the fact servants only sometimes bowed to him. He could punish those who accused him of murdering his wife, or even questioned his manhood. He could be a cruel king, one who ruled with a fist of iron so tight the kingdom would break. That was not what he wanted though; but the was expected of kings. Either they were shrimp-like men who could barely wipe their own ass, or they were ruthless warlords. Either way, people complained. Oh he didn't go to war often enough, or, he was too weak because he let his wife have power. He wasn't cruel enough because he didn't beat his wife when she talked back to him. It was inane, the logic ran in circles he couldn't even follow. So, the king decided that he wouldn't do that, he wouldn't play the game. He would let the evidence stand for itself, and in the end, hopefully when a thousand and one generations would look back at his rule, they would see the truth. They see that he was great man, perhaps not a great king, but he had heart made of flesh and blood, not stone and ice.

Still, even with that on the table, he knew that his rule might not be that long. Certainly his wife's advisors, men who saw only black and white, blinded with loyalty Chiyoko hadn't even wanted, were working untiringly to get him off the throne and replace him with some warlord who would give nothing but war, poverty, and agony to his people. They would do this because of expectations; they would make the king fall for another king who be their downfall.

Sitting on his bed, with servants scurrying around him that held no loyalty to him, for there was no loyalty anymore truthfully, he couldn't help his thoughts. He knew a few, perhaps the ones who'd approached him questioning about his needs, were ready to transfer the loyalty to him. He didn't really want it though, and if he got a new queen, they would strip their loyalty from him and give it to this unknown queen, even if she was just a shallow woman conceited with greed for material things.

If he had someone to say it too, he would say that life sucked. He would've said it to his wife, but she was dead and the sudden down-turn to his life was because she was dead. He knew what she would say to. She would tell him that yes, life was miserable, but we lived to change the course of the future, and hopefully, to change it for the better. He would smile at that, lean over and kiss his wife, and she would laugh a hearty laugh and the two would do something for fun. Nevertheless, she was gone, and happy, care-free days were not in sight. Perhaps fighting those who'd rather have him dead than rule, or seeking solace in the tavern on the mainland knowing he was exiled from his home. The one thing he didn't foresee though was no one questioning his ability to rule without his wife.

* * *

After the decision had been made to find a human to indoctrinate into becoming a queen resembling their beloved Chiyoko, they had the scribe Ioki Seiichi write it down, and then go with the chief of the barracks to the mainland in search of the perfect human. That had been about three days ago, one of which was spent travelling, and the other two searching. Not once had the two demons slept for they knew that sleep would be their enemy. If they slept, the might miss the unknown factor in their plot.

Though now, things were looking up. They had narrowed it down to two girls, both who were friends and traveled together on some quest or whatnot. It didn't matter really. It was just go they were in the same place so that the scribe and the warrior could watch them both equally and make a good decision.

The girls were Kagome and Sango. Kagome dressed oddly, yet they counted that as an upside. Her odd attire said to them that she was open with being different from ordinary humans, and that she might not care about the differences between her culture and the Court of Delicacy. Sango was a demon slayer however, and even if that didn't scream good for them, hypnotizing could teach her to use her strength against her enemies. Both were great candidates.

One was strong, a rough and ready leader who already had the fighting skills down pat, and a few of the more diplomatic. The other leaned more towards diplomacy as it seemed, she could read and write fantastically well, and though he tongue seemed odd occasionally, she wasn't afraid to speak up. Her fighting skill, while much inferior to her counter-part, were there and there were holy powers to make her that much stronger. Honestly, the only reason Kagome had not been picked was because the chief wanted to see a bit more of Sango. Such a skilled slayer could be more useful than a diplomat.

The decision didn't take too long though. Even if the chief had wanted Sango more for fighting reasons, they went with Kagome. She was the one who had the diplomatic skills, and enough fighting skills to compensate. She could trained to be a better fighter, that was certain and easier. Training Sango, a woman obviously born for the heat of battle and rain of bloodshed, in tact and subtlety would be much more difficult.

Still, as they left to report their decision to the council of advisors, the chief of the barracks cast one last glance over his shoulder. She could be useful too.


End file.
